DISCO DEMOLITION NIGHT: Today is the 32nd anniversary of Disco Demolition Night, a promo event occurring during a scheduled twi-nite doubleheader between the Chicago White Sox and the Detroit Tigers that would prove to be the most ill-conceived promotional idea since the infamous "Ten Cent Beer Night" in Cleveland in 1974. Though some incorrectly think it had to do with racism, homophobia, etc., the event had much more to do with the fact that Chicago radio station WDAI forced out morning host Steve Dahl o­n Chirstmas Eve 1978, to switch to a disco format. A man who is cashiered wearing a Santa suit tends to carry a grudge. Dahl re-surfaced at WLUP with "Do You Think I'm Disco?" -- a parody of Rod Stewart's "Do You Think I'm Sexy?" with lyrics that targeted yuppie narcissism and materialism. He also did a bit where he pretended to blow-up disco records, which Mike Veeck, the son of Sox owner (and legendary showman) Bill Veeck, thought could be turned into a promotion whereby admission was 98 cents (because WLUP was FM 98) for anyone who brought a disco record to be blown up between the two games. It was far more successful and less controllable than either Dahl or Veeck imagined, with young people storming the park to enter, creating a fog of marijuana smoke in the stands, sailing records like frisbees, throwing firecrackers and ultimately storming the diamond after the scheduled demolition had concluded and Dahl was en route to the announcer's booth for the second game. Footage of the event from from stellamasters, along with the aftermath at FuzzyMemories and this compilation of local news coverage from the night is pretty darned good, with cameos from Bill Kurtis and Greg Gumbel.

CUTOUT BIN: From Cap'n Jazz to Nirvana, from the Who to A-ha, from the Beatles to Dead or Alive, from Pat Benatar to the Buzzcocks, plus Billy Bragg, the Hold Steady, Stevie Wonder, Paul Westerberg and more -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases include Grown Ups 2, which is currently scoring 5 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and Pacific Rim, which is scoring 72 percent.

EGYPT is reportedly looking to suspend its peace accord with Israel in order to wage a massive campaign against jihadists in the Sinai. A leader in the Egyptian Gama'a al-Islamiyya said his group was ready to "fight" for Mohammed Morsi's reinstatement as president of Egypt. Hamas' Mousa Abu Marzouk, who had been based in Cairo, has reportedly fled the country following Morsi's ouster.

EGYPT: Islamist militants killed two people and wounded six in an overnight attack in the Sinai. Two additional security posts were also attacked by gunmen. Egypt's prosecutor's office ordered the arrest of numerous Muslim Brotherhood officials.

PATE REUNION PHOTOS: Taken by Aurora Engle-Pratt and Doug Hansen, posted by Naomi Pratt, and visible to the public via the Facebook. Don't miss the awesome shot of my bald spot! Seriously, thanks to Aurora and Doug for documenting a terrific weekend.

LIBYA: A former Gaddhafi regime security official was assassinated in Benghazi when his car exploded.

SYRIA: At its first central party leadership committee meeting since 2005, the Assad regime's ruling Baath party replaced 16 of its top leaders, including Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa, who will nonetheless remain in office. Ghassan Hitto, prime minister of the rebel Syrian National Coalition, resigned, citing an inability to form an interim government. Hitto is said to be closer to Islamists and less favored by Saudi Arabia, whose candidate, secular dissident Ahmad Assi Jarba, was selected two days ago to lead the Syrian National Coalition. Islamist rebels say the downfall of Egypt's popularly elected Muslim Brotherhood president has proven that Western nations pushing for democracy will never accept them, and reinforced the view of radicals that a violent power grab is their only resort.

EGYPT: At least 51 people were killed as the army opened fire on pro-Morsi supporters in Cairo. Hamas condemned the incident, and the presidency planned to form a judicial committee to investigate it.

(Ron Hahm, Mike Kelly, Jon Pratt, and Jon Hahn, after the load-out. Photo by or for Ken King)

CLAUDE PATE REUNION WEEKEND: Great times and great shows, with only minor injuries and no arrests. Playing both all-ages and 21+ shows resulted in some duplication of sets, but with Ron Hahm and Jon Hahn swapping the drum throne for different feels (and in the case of "She's So Special," a different arrangement) on these tunes. In addition to fan favorites like "Chalk It Up To Fate," "Rope Around The Moon" "You Must Be Dreaming" and "If You Will, I Will," and All The Fixins tracks like "A Matter of Dos" (or is it "Dues?") and "Heartache Junkies," the band also dipped deep into the Pate catalog for numbers not heard at the 2003 reunion, including "I'll Be Your Man," "Tell Me Now," "Runaway," "Drivin'" and "Eye On Everything." That last song produced a quintessential Pate moment, in which Jon Pratt, wielding his axe in full-on hard-rock mode, eliminated what was surely to be a scorching solo by accidentally stepping on his electronic tuner. Of course, not every Pate moment carries the whiff of Spinal Tap. The third set ended with a particularly fine version of "Gone Electric" that caused Friend of Pate Susan Jasper -- who did yeowoman's duty hosting we out-of-towners -- to ask, "Is that the best bass line ever?" It may be, though it may be the person who suggested Mike Kelly is a better bassist than ever is correct. The evening almost concluded with an alternately scorching and hilarious version of "My Turn" (ten years down, indeed), but the crowd (and it was a crowd) convinced them to encore with an unrehearsed but raucous rendition of The Yardbirds' "For Your Love." Special thanks also to Doug Hansen for running the soundboard and monitoring the recording gear at Whiskey River.

Of course, for Friends of Pate, the shows were only part of the attraction. Reconnecting with college pals at the pre-show picnic, between sets or at the Perkin's after-party was also a treat for many of us, by which I mean me. I would call it Big Chilling, but someone reminded me we're all ten years older than those characters. Sigh. At the risk of inadvertently omitting anyone not already mentioned, it was terrific to see the O'Neills, Fitzgeralds, Fryzeks, and Cravens, as well as Regina Escue, Charlie Vanek, and Ken King (who rode shotgun with me for dramatic readings from the late Scott Miller's wonderful book "Music: What Happened?"). It was also great to see how well everyone's kids are turning out (though in the case of the band, I'm going to credit Naomi, Elizabeth and Judy). I will single out only Jon P's daughters because I joked that joining Facebook (to administer the Pate page) and seeing them suddenly ten years older was a depressing reminder of my own age. In reality, all three seem to have grown into charming young women (though I only got to chat briefly with the eldest about some things Baltimore). Catching them singing along at the first show was particulalrly fun, and Jon tells me they can sing, referring to them as the Von Engle-Trapps. It seems that Jon and Naomi successfully executed the Ron Burgundy plan. Let's not wait another decade for the next one, m'kay?

TOM ROBINSON and Nick Mobbs recall the making of "Glad to be Gay" for The Guardian.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Despicable Me 2 rules the cineplex with 142 million over the long weekend, greatly exceeding tracking estimates around 100 million. Against a 76 million budget, this is another smash for Universal. The Lone Ranger places a distant second of 49 million against a 215 million budget, which is the sort of July 4th flop not seen since Wild Wild West. Given that example, and the competition from the Despicable sequel, it was sheer hubris of Disney to try this; they now reap the whirlwind. The Heat shows with 25 million and an 86 million total against a 43 million budget. Monsters University drops to No. 4, with 19 million -- a 57 percent drop that constitutes Despicable Me 2's second shot to the Mouse. World War Z rounds out the Top 5 with 18.2 million and a 158.8 million domestic total against a 190 million budget. Below the fold, White House Down sucks wind, Man Of Steel continues to show weak legs and Kevin Hart pulls in 10.1 million against a 750K budget.

KERRY WASHINGTON married San Francisco 49ers corner back Nnamdi Asomugha.

ELISHA CUTHBERT married Dion Phaneuf, defensemen and captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team, on Saturday, July 6.

PATE REUNION: Jon, Mike & Jon (and we hope Ron) will be retaking a stage somewhere near Iowa State University on July 5th, 2013, just one short decade after their last reunion gig. Clear your calendar for something transcendent, a train wreck, or both! If you're on the Facebook, check in with the event page. ALSO: I cannot promise anything, but I'll try to have some live coverage of the reunion festivities available through the PateBlog Twitter account.

Of course, the holiday more broadly celebrates the American Revolutionary War, and the Founders' unlikely victory. People with the highest standard of living and the lowest taxes in the Western World fought a sometimes unpopular war for our freedom. Early o­n, the Revolutionaries (also known as "Americans" or "Patriots") had the active support of about 40 to 45 percent of the colonial population. By 1779, there were more Americans fighting with the British than with Washington, which is why Washington needed help from the French, the Spanish and freed Blacks. You can separate fact from fiction regarding the sacrifices and fates of the Founders at Snopes. You can hear two-time Pulitzer Prize winner David McCullough read from the first chapter of his 1776 via NPR. Or watch a nifty clip on the passage and public reading of the Declaration from the John Adams miniseries.